


Prisoner

by ChickenXD



Category: Hatoful Kareshi | Hatoful Boyfriend
Genre: Attempted Murder, M/M, Politics, Revolution
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-27
Updated: 2016-08-11
Packaged: 2018-07-27 03:20:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 15,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7601407
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChickenXD/pseuds/ChickenXD
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There's a political uprising and Ryuuji is Utsuro's bodyguard, kind of</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“It’s not looking very good out there, huh?”

Ryuuji looked out of the window while holding the phone to his ear. It was starting to get dark outside, but Ryuuji could still see a lot of people walking on the streets, some of them holding flashlights, and could hear them shouting.

Utsuro was sitting behind him, busy typing something on the computer. Upon hearing Ryuuji’s remark, he got up and walked to the window, as well. 

“What’s going on?” Utsuro asked, worried – “Shouldn’t we try to do something?”

“Geez, nobody’s picking up,” Ryuuji sighed as he hung up his phone, “I’m going out to check it out. Stay here, okay?”

Utsuro only asked as he watched Ryuuji walk out of the room, and closed the door behind him.

  
  


Felt kind of eerie walking down the empty hallways, although Ryuuji usually would walk around like this, too.

The lights were still bright, but nobody was around. For some reason, it felt so… sterile, cold, foreign.

He could still faintly hear the people shouting outside, although he couldn’t make out a word of what they said. Pretty incredible, considering he was on the fourth floor and could still hear them – 

Ryuuji walked downstairs cautiously, and carefully peeked from behind the wall. He could see that it was empty as well – 

There wasn’t an evacuation call or anything, and usually there would be one or two people just walking around between the rooms.

He suddenly felt his phone vibrating in his pocket, and quickly picked it up. 

_ “You should leave now.” _

“...eh?” Ryuuji asked, “But what about…”

_ “Just leave now.” _

Ryuuji hung up and put the phone back in his pocket, then slowly went back upstairs. 

 

“Utsuro-kun?”

Utsuro turned to look at Ryuuji again as he entered the room.

“Is everything okay downstairs, Kawara-sensei?”

“Yeah! Don’t worry!” Ryuuji replied, “We just need to leave soon. It might get dangerous with all these people surrounding the lab.”

“I see…”

Utsuro looked back out of the window as Ryuuji made his way casually to the storage room. Once there, he took out a towel and a bottle of chloroform, and poured a healthy amount there. Once that was done he walked over to his other lab coat, and took out a syringe filled with ketamine from its pockets, while peeking out to see if Utsuro had noticed him.

He walked back out to see Utsuro still looking out of the window worriedly. Ryuuji casually walked up behind him, pretending to look out from over his shoulder.

“Pretty scary, huh?” Ryuuji asked, “Who knows what a mob like that is going to do.”

“But Kawara-sensei, how exactly are we going to leave without them blocking us?” Utsuro asked, “I don’t think they’d comply even if we ask them nicely…”

“Well, we have to get out of here somehow, and that’s our best bet,” Ryuuji said. 

It was silent for a while as Utsuro continued looking out of the window – and Ryuuji took out the towel with chloroform.

“Utsuro-kun,” Ryuuji said as he walked closer to Utsuro, “Uh… no hard feelings, okay?”

Utsuro turned around to look at him – “What do you mean, sensei?”

Suddenly Ryuuji wrapped his arm around Utsuro’s shoulder and held him tightly, while pressing the towel onto his face. Utsuro let out a muffled scream, his hands immediately grabbing onto Ryuuji’s arm to try to pry him away – 

But of course, failed, and the effects of chloroform kicked in quick enough. Ryuuji could feel Utsuro’s grip on his arms slowly weaken as his eyelids fell, and soon his legs weakened and he fell onto Ryuuji’s arms. Ryuuji quickly caught him and leaned him against the wall before slowly putting him down on the floor. 

He then took out the syringe, rolled up Utsuro’s sleeves and tried feeling for his vein. Ryuuji, being the good doctor he was, quickly found it and injected the ketamine.

Ryuuji looked up at Utsuro – he was sound asleep at this point, and his breathing seemed normal. 

“Sorry about this, Utsuro-kun,” Ryuuji whispered as he gently cupped Utsuro’s cheeks, “This is all for your own good, I promise.”

~•~

 

Utsuro woke up, and found himself in a strange room.    
It was dark yet warm all around him, but there was some reddish light coming from outside, so it was bright enough for him to make out the objects in the room – a desk lamp, a few containers and vials, books –

He slowly sat up and examined his body. He was feeling a bit light-headed, but that aside, he wasn't in pain, he wasn't tied to the bed or anything –

_ How did I get here?  _ he wondered – he could remember being with Ryuuji in the lab, looking out of the window and talking about what seemed to be a riot outside; and then it was as if there was a gap in time, and suddenly he just ended up here. 

He reached over to the lamp, and turned it on. The room was quickly bathed in rich orange light from the bulb, and the reddish light from the outside seemed to recede.  

Utsuro took some of the containers on the table and examined them – they were mostly sleeping pills, and a vial of ketamine. Was that how he got there?

He suddenly heard the click of the door – 

He quickly put back all the medicines, and he could see Ryuuji walking in. He was no longer in his work clothes – he was wearing a T-shirt with shorts and slippers now. Ryuuji seemed... somewhat surprised to see that Utsuro was awake, but smiled anyway. 

“You're up, Utsuro-kun?” Ryuuji asked as he sat down on the bed, “How are you feeling?”

“I'm... fine, I suppose,” Utsuro replied. Kind of a relief to see Ryuuji here…

Although Utsuro couldn't help but be confused why he would be in this strange place.

“...where is this, Kawara-sensei?”

“A safe place!” Ryuuji replied, “There were people attacking the lab and you got knocked out, but I was able to get you out.”

“Are you hurt?” Utsuro asked worriedly, “What's happening? Why would they attack the lab?”

“From what I understand, it's an uprising of sorts,” Ryuuji replied, “Seems like they are specifically attacking people who are related to the Hawk Party... so that includes us.”

Ryuuji could see that Utsuro was getting uncomfortable with this revelation – he let out a sigh as he folded his legs and hugged his knees. 

“...why would they do that?”

“Well, the Hawk Party has always been the opposing party, so I'm not all that surprised this would happen eventually,” Ryuuji replied, “But we're going to be safe here, so we should just wait till it all calms down.”

Utsuro nodded, “I... suppose.”

It was then silent for a while as Ryuuji stood up and walked to the window and opened the curtains. Utsuro could tell that it was dark out, and for some reason the red light seemed to be coming from there, too. 

“What time is it, sensei?”

“Around 10,” Ryuuji replied, “Are you hungry, Utsuro-kun?”

“What’s going on out there?” Utsuro asked as he slowly got up – he was still feeling dizzy, so he stumbled as he walked. Ryuuji quickly walked up to him, holding his arm so he wouldn’t fall down.

“Don’t push yourself too hard, Utsuro-kun,” Ryuuji said while slowly guiding him to the window to look outside – 

Utsuro could see that there were people outside, holding signs, and there was a big fire on the middle of the road. 

“Man, it’s getting crazy,” Ryuuji sighed as he closed the curtains, “Come on, let’s go watch the news. Maybe we’ll find out something?”

Utsuro nodded, and so the two of them headed outside. 

It looked like a normal apartment outside – there was a couch, a table with a mug on it and some leftover snack packaging – probably Ryuuji’s, and a small TV. Utsuro sat down on the couch while Ryuuji walked over to cabinet, opened it and took out a cup of instant noodles.

“I’ll make you some ramen, Utsuro-kun – how does that sound?”

“Anything’s fine,” Utsuro replied as he nodded, “Thank you so much, sensei.”

Utsuro turned on the TV then – it was already tuned on a news channel, so Utsuro just decided to watch it.

Ryuuji had just prepared some water to boil when he felt his phone ringing in his pocket. He quickly picked it up – 

“Hello?”

_ “Good job. Where are you right now?” _

“I’m somewhere safe and hidden, so don’t worry about it.”

_ “Don’t forget to come here tomorrow.” _

And the person hung up. Ryuuji put the phone back into his pocket while turning to look at what Utsuro was doing – 

Utsuro was now staring at the television, wide-eyed – it seemed like he was frozen, his mouth ajar. Ryuuji couldn’t help but worry, and slowly walked over to him.

“What’s wrong, Utsuro-kun? Did something really bad happen?”

Utsuro didn’t reply – he only continued to stare at the television, as if in disbelief. Ryuuji stood behind him, listening – 

_ “...apparently Mr. and Mrs. Ichijou had been poisoned. The policemen found Mr. Ichijou’s body in his office while his wife was found at home – their son, Utsuro, is still missing. No suspects have been identified yet…” _

Utsuro suddenly stood up, hurriedly walking past Ryuuji into the room he came from. Ryuuji tried to chase him – 

But too late. Utsuro already got in, and shut the door behind him. Ryuuji didn’t give up, though, quickly opening the door again. 

Utsuro was standing by the window, now staring outside. Ryuuji couldn’t help but feel sorry for him – 

All of sudden, both his parents are dead for unclear reasons – and now his life was potentially in danger.

“Utsuro-kun?” Ryuuji asked, walking closer to Utsuro – “Utsuro-kun, it’s going to be okay.”

Utsuro didn’t reply, though – he only kept staring out of the window. Ryuuji carefully patted Utsuro at the back, trying to console him – Utsuro didn’t seem to be consoled in any way, but he wasn’t exactly refusing Ryuuji’s attention either.

Ryuuji could see the sadness in Utsuro’s eyes, and his breathing was slightly faster – of course he would be emotional. Ryuuji could totally understand that.

“...they don’t deserve to die.”

Utsuro turned to look at Ryuuji, eyes brimming with tears.

“I mean… I guess they have a few enemies, but still, why…” Utsuro sniffled, “They don’t need to die, do they?”

“Utsuro-kun, it’s going to be alright,” Ryuuji said gently, feeling a lump in his throat – “I’ll try my best to keep you safe, alright?”

Utsuro looked like he was about to say something for a second, but never got the chance as he started sobbing. Ryuuji gently held Utsuro in his arms, letting Utsuro rest his head on Ryuuji’s chest as he continued sobbing.

It hurt, seeing Utsuro suffer like this, although he knew full well it was his fault. 

“Utsuro-kun, don’t cry,” Ryuuji said gently, “It’s going to be okay.”

Utsuro continued crying, each of his muffled sobs almost like a stake stabbed at Ryuuji’s hear.

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

Ryuuji woke up to find that the bed next to him was empty.

Last night Utsuro had cried himself to sleep, and so Ryuuji decided to simply let him sleep on the bed, while he slept on the floor with a futon – but Utsuro was gone. 

He quickly got up and walked out of the room, fearing he had left –

When he got outside, the TV was on, and Utsuro was sitting in front of the television, the remote in his hand and his eyes glued to the screen. It was tuned to some advertising – Ryuuji hadn’t had a chance to tell what it was about when Utsuro already switched the channel, onto a news programme.

_ “Last night, the policemen arrested some Dove and Hawk Party protesters who were fighting near the park –” _

The channel switched again,  _ “The Takaba Laboratory was set on fire, we assume by some Dove Party enthusiasts –” _

The TV showed a clip of a certain familiar building on fire, slowly getting consumed by the flames – Ryuuji could see some people standing around the building, cheering as it slowly burnt down.

Utsuro didn’t stay long on that news channel, though, and soon enough switched the channel again. Ryuuji wanted to stop him so he could hear more about the lab being burnt down, but decided to let him.

_ “The murder of the Ichijou couple is still under investigation. So far, the cause of death had been determined to be arsenic poisoning, although no suspect has been named yet. Their son Utsuro is still missing, and the police suspect he might be dead and his body thrown away somewhere –” _

Ryuuji suddenly walked over, taking the remote from Utsuro’s hands, and turned off the TV. Utsuro let out a sigh as he got up, trying to snatch the remote back, but Ryuuji shook his head.

“Don’t do this to yourself, Utsuro-kun.”

“Give it back,” Utsuro said, trying to sound menacing – but to Ryuuji he just sounded desperate.

“I understand you’re angry and want answers, but all this information right now is just going to hurt you.”

“Kawara-sensei, you can’t possibly understand,” Utsuro pleaded, “My parents died in one night, someone out there wants me dead, and… I can’t just be sitting here doing nothing.”

“So what, I let you out and let you die?”

Utsuro fell silent upon hearing that, and Ryuuji immediately felt bad. He obediently sat back down on the couch and curled up, almost as if he was trying to shrink himself.

“I’m sorry, Utsuro-kun,” Ryuuji quickly apologized, “I didn’t mean to…”

“It’s alright.”

Well, although he said that, Ryuuji was very uncertain whether that was true. He sat down next to Utsuro, reaching over to touch his shoulder. Again, Utsuro didn’t exactly reject his attempt, but he doesn’t seem that comforted either.

“It’s for my safety,” Utsuro muttered, “I understand.”

“Sorry, Utsuro-kun, if I sound too harsh…”

“I know you mean well,” Utsuro replied as he looked up to Ryuuji, “It’s… going to be alright, isn’t it, sensei?”

“Yes it is,” Ryuuji replied reassuringly while patting Isa’s head, “I’ll do my best to keep you safe, Utsuro-kun.”

Utsuro smiled, although it seemed forced, and nodded.

“I trust you.”

Somehow, hearing that made Ryuuji’s heart sink.

Things as they were were so… uncertain, and Ryuuji certainly couldn’t tell what was going to happen, and yet here he was, convincing Utsuro he was always going to be safe, giving false hope – 

What a terrible liar.

He smiled anyway, pretending everything was going to be fine, as Utsuro said, and mussed his hair. Utsuro giggled softly, seemingly having forgotten his sorrow for a fleeting moment…

“Have you eaten anything? You ended up not eating anything last night, right?””

Utsuro shook his head. Ryuuji got up then, walking to the kitchen. 

“Ah, that reminds me, I need to go get groceries,” Ryuuji said as he opened the fridge, “Just in case things get worse and we can’t get out of the house, you know?”

“Are you going to walk?” Utsuro asked, concerned – “I… I don’t think it’s a good idea, sensei…”

“I mean, I have to, or else we’ll have nothing to eat tomorrow,” Ryuuji replied with a sigh, “I didn’t see this riot coming at all. What terrible timing. Anyway, I have some cereal for now. Or do you want instant noodles?”

“Anything’s fine.”

Ryuuji took out a bowl and a box of cereal, then poured out some cereal – seemed like he poured out all that was left inside –  followed by milk. Utsuro hesitantly got up and walked over to the table, sitting down in front of Ryuuji.

“Eat up, Utsuro-kun! You have to be strong and healthy for whatever’s coming!”

A little smile was drawn on Utsuro’s face as he nodded and started spooning some cereal into his mouth. Ryuuji too, sat down in front of him and started eating.

“Is there anything specific I should get for you from the store?” Ryuuji asked, “I mean, you are living away from home. Maybe a few clothes?”

“Just the bare necessities will do.”

“You don’t have to hold back, Utsuro-kun! If there’s anything you need, just tell me, alright?”

Utsuro looked up at him, looking somewhat doubtful, but nodded anyways.

“I won’t be gone for long. Probably two hours, at most,” Ryuuji said, looking at the clock – it was almost 8 AM. “Don’t go out, and don’t open the door for anyone, okay? I’ll have a key with me.”

Utsuro nodded.

“...do you want some, sensei?” Utsuro asked, pushing the bowl over to Ryuuji, “I think I’ve had enough…”

“No, you can have it all! I can grab something to eat on the way,” Ryuuji said with a smile, “But I really appreciate you being concerned for me, Utsuro-kun! Thanks!”

Ryuuji could see Utsuro was slightly flustered by this, and bowed his head down. Even in this situation, he still had his usual demeanor…

Kind of a relief, at least for Ryuuji.

~•~

The town wasn’t… exactly dead, but normal life certainly had stopped in face of this chaos. 

The streets were pretty much empty, save for the protesters, who were just running around causing destruction.

“Kill the Hawks! Kill the Hawks!” 

Ryuuji decided to walk faster. 

He could see that most shops were closed – in fear of vandalism or looting, perhaps – but some of the smaller shops were still open, and having a few customers. Doing groceries will be pretty difficult like this…

Ryuuji walked into an open coffee shop, and looked around. There were quite a lot of people inside, although he would guess they were just protesters taking a break – a lot of them had pushed the tables together and were sitting around it like a big group. 

Suddenly Ryuuji felt a hand grabbing his right shoulder, and quickly turned around to look –

Standing behind him was a young man with light blue hair and glasses, wearing a black leather jacket with the Doves’ logo on it. 

“Hey, Kawara!” he greeted with a friendly smile, “Good to see you made it here!”

Ryuuji cracked a smile as he greeted the young man, “Hey, Sakazaki-kun.”

“So do you like your new place?”

“Well, it’s kind of small compared to my usual apartment, but since it’s just temporary, I’ll manage.”

“That’s good!” Yuuya gestured towards one of the tables, “Come on, get something to eat! Everyone here is our friend!”

Ryuuji sat down in one of the empty chairs, and Yuuya sat down next to him. Everyone else was busy eating and talking – Yuuya took a bagel from the middle of the table, and handed it to Ryuuji. 

“Hey, guys!” Yuuya called out suddenly, “This guy here is the one who killed the Ichijou kid!”

“Sakazaki-kun, you don’t need to say that so loudly…”

“Really?” some other man asked, “Well, good job then!”

“Yeah, man, not even the police found him yet!”

“Ah…” Ryuuji forced a smile, “Thanks… I guess.”

“So how did it feel like? Did he beg for mercy?” Yuuya asked, “How did he look at you with despair as you killed him? Disbelief at how his best friend betrayed him?”

Ryuuji turned to look at Yuuya, surprised and also concerned that Yuuya would ask something so sadistic – but Yuuya only smiled and patted him at the back. 

“You’ll get used to it,” he said, “Killing people, I mean.”

“Well, I sure hope not.”

“What did you do to get rid of the body anyway?” 

Ryuuji shrugged, “Cut it up and buried it in various places around town.”

“Must be easy to pull off for a doctor, eh?”

“Anyway, what did you call me for?” Ryuuji asked, trying to change the subject.

“Nothing,” Yuuya replied, “Just thought you’d like to hang out with everyone else. Stay here for a while! Eat something, don’t be shy!”

“Thanks, Yuuya,” Ryuuji replied, “I guess I’ll stay for a bit.”

~•~

_ Why did I even agree to do something like this? _

Ryuuji couldn’t help but start wondering that as he walked down the streets. 

He knew this revolution… or massacre was coming, and the agreement was that he would be provided protection, under the condition he killed Utsuro.

Utsuro… well, now that Ryuuji thought about it, there was really no reason for him to die. Maybe that was why he had decided to keep him alive, knowing full well it was against the agreement.

What’s the worse that can happen anyway if he was found doing this?

Hell, let’s not think about that first, what should he do with Utsuro now? Surely he can’t stay in that cramped little apartment forever – plus, the Doves might find him soon – but where else could he go, now that he has no family? Even when the revolution ended, he wouldn’t be safe, because someone would be after his life. 

Thinking about all this was starting to make Ryuuji despair. 

But Utsuro can’t know. 

Ryuuji brought this upon himself, after all. 

~•~

“I’m home!”

Ryuuji held the door open with his body, as he put down a few plastic bags. Utsuro quickly walked to him, trying to help. 

“I got a lot of supplies!” Ryuuji said, “Also got you a few clothes, toothbrush…”

“Thank you, Kawara-sensei.”

“Don’t mention it!”

Utsuro began helping Ryuuji take out a few things, and checking them over, for whatever reason. 

“How are things outside?”

“It’s not as bad as I thought, actually, but a lot of shops are closed now and there are a lot of protesters,” Ryuuji replied, “I still think it’s best to lay low, Utsuro-kun.”

“Keep pretending I’m dead, you mean?”

Ryuuji nodded. 

 

A few minutes later, he and Utsuro had settled down in front of the TV – Ryuuji was busy eating ramen, while Utsuro was watching the news attentively. Ryuuji had decided to let him, because… why not, basically. Maybe Ryuuji would just call him out if any news about the Ichijous’ murder come up.

_ “According to police investigations, the fire at Takaba Labs came from inside the building…” _

“Stay on this channel for a bit, Utsuro-kun,” Ryuuji asked, and so Utsuro nodded.

_ “Almost everything in the building had been incinerated when firemen finally arrive at the scene. So far police attention had been too focused on the current uprising to investigate the real cause, but seems like there were no victims.” _

Now that Ryuuji thought about it, the building was so empty when he walked around outside the lab yesterday. Where could everyone be…?

“...that’s fortunate,” Utsuro remarked, “Although… maybe the people who ambushed the lab should’ve died in that fire.”

“Maybe they started it, and then ran away?”

Utsuro looked down at the couch with a sigh.

“...we’re really lucky to have escaped, aren’t we…” 

“Yeah.” Ryuuji nodded, “We sure are.”

“...maybe they were trying to kill me... burning everything down would get rid of evidence…”

Ryuuji turned to look at Utsuro, concerned, but he seemed unfazed as he switched the channel.

_ “Some very interesting details about the Ichijous have emerged –” _

Ryuuji thought about telling Utsuro to switch the channel, but then Utsuro seemed really interested in whatever they were going to say.

_ “While police still has no leads over who could’ve done it, they found evidence that they could’ve been involved in money laundering. They found a few foreign bank accounts with total worth of at least ten billion dollars –  _

_ “Where they got this money from and what it would’ve been used for is still unclear, but…” _

Utsuro turned off the TV without Ryuuji even telling him to, and it was suddenly silent again.

Ryuuji put down the bowl on his table, and slowly reached over to pat Utsuro’s back. He seemed… horrified, but at the same time sad about this.

“Utsuro-kun, that doesn’t matter now.”

Utsuro didn’t reply, only glanced at Ryuuji for a second before letting a sigh and folding his knees to hug them.

“So my parents are criminals now.”

“I mean...”

“Is this why people were out to get them?”

Ryuuji sighed, “Maybe.”

“I don’t want any of that money,” Utsuro muttered, “I didn’t know they were doing things like that. I just…”

Utsuro paused as he turned to look at Ryuuji, almost as if afraid.

“...Kawara-sensei,” he muttered, “It feels like my life has been useless.”

“Utsuro-kun…”

“They… they were always kind to me,” he went on, “And now turns out they’ve been doing these horrible things behind my back... 

“It feels like… I’m not even allowed to remember them as good people.”

Ryuuji fell silent as Utsuro buried his face in his knees. Ryuuji wrapped his arms around Utsuro’s shoulder and pulled him close, trying to comfort him.

“I don’t know,” Utsuro sighed, “Is there even a point to my life?”

 


	3. Chapter 3

It was almost light out when Utsuro woke up. 

Ryuuji was no longer in the room, for some reason – yesterday Utsuro was somehow able to wake up before Ryuuji and thus had time to watch the news before Ryuuji stopped him –

But now he felt like he understood why Ryuuji did. Ryuuji was just… trying his best to protect him, and even if that meant protecting him from the terrible truth. 

These past few days have felt unreal. As if he just blinked, and poof – everything disappeared. 

His parents, his home, his safety. 

What he thought the truth was ended up just being lies. 

Even now, although Ryuuji was still by his side, Utsuro followed him merely because he had no other choice. Whether or not Ryuuji really meant well, he had no idea –

But he wanted to believe that. 

 

When Utsuro walked out of the room, he immediately saw Ryuuji stuffing his clothes into a small suitcase. Ryuuji himself was wearing casual clothes and jeans, as if he was going somewhere. 

“Ah, you’re up!” Ryuuji remarked upon seeing him, “Why don’t you get something to eat, Utsuro-kun?”

“Wait, what are you doing?” Utsuro asked, quickly gripped with fear, “Where are you going, sensei?”

“Where are we going, you mean?” Ryuuji corrected, “On an adventure!”

“What do you mean?”

“You know, the town isn’t exactly very safe right now,” Ryuuji explained while continuing to put clothes in, “So I thought it’s best if we get out of here.”

“But where to?”

“I don’t know yet,” Ryuuji replied honestly, “Any ideas, Utsuro-kun?”

Utsuro shook his head as he walked closer to Ryuuji – he could see that Ryuuji had also packed the clothes he bought for him, so maybe opting out of this “adventure” isn’t an option. 

“Anyway, Utsuro-kun, you should come up with a fake name,” Ryuuji suggested, “We wouldn’t want you being caught by the police, right?”

Now that Ryuuji mentioned it, Utsuro couldn’t help but wonder, too – it would be best if he wasn’t associated with his parents, now that their crime had been discovered.

“You should wear this,” Ryuuji said as he handed Utsuro a green hoodie, “And then I have a few face masks in the kitchen. Just pretend to be sick or something.”

Utsuro nodded as he took the hoodie, and then walked over to the bedroom to get changed. 

A few minutes later he walked out, and saw that Ryuuji was done packing, and was busy cooking something. 

“You should really eat, Utsuro-kun! We don’t know when our next meal will be…”

Utsuro sat down on the table as Ryuuji served him some eggs and pancakes. Ryuuji made himself another plate, then sat down in front of Utsuro and started eating. 

Utsuro, on the other hand, looked down at his plate for a while, before looking back up at Ryuuji. Somehow he’d lost his appetite…

This could be home. This could be him eating with his parents, but that certainly isn’t possible anymore.

 

“...Kawara-sensei?” Utsuro asked, “Why did you decide to help me?”

Ryuuji paused eating, and turned to Utsuro. 

“I mean, what else am I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know, but…” Utsuro sighed, “You don’t have to do this.”

“But I should, right?”

Utsuro fell silent then, once again looking at his plate. Ryuuji too, looked at him for a while, as if making sure he was okay, before turning back to eat. 

“It’s going to be alright,” Ryuuji said with a sad smile, “Or at least I’ll try my best, okay?”

Utsuro nodded, and looked up at Ryuuji with a smile – so Ryuuji smiled back at him. 

Right now, hope was all he’s got. 

 

The town looked so different compared to the last time Utsuro saw it. 

Usually the streets would be lively, full of people doing their activities, but it was just empty that day. The shops are closed and the windows’ curtains were all drawn –

Ryuuji was pulling his hand as they walked through town. Utsuro continued looking around – there were a few police cars here and there, patrolling, but that aside they were the only ones on the street. 

“Just act normal,” Ryuuji said, “They’re not likely to stop us.”

“But how are we going to get out of here, sensei?” Utsuro asked, “And where to?”

“We’ll go north, to Hachiman City,” Ryuuji replied, “It’s about two hours with the train, and then we can decide what to do next when we get there.”

“Are you sure it hasn’t been affected yet?”

“Hopefully not,” Ryuuji replied –

_ Also, I really am more worried about someone from the Doves noticing my disappearance… _

“But nobody there knows us, so you don’t need to worry about people asking who we are.”

Utsuro nodded. 

He noticed Ryuuji looking around cautiously before entering the station, and then quickly pulling him inside. 

Almost as if Ryuuji was trying to run away from someone else. 

~•~

“Bonjour!”

Yuuya opened the door excitedly – only to find that the apartment was empty. A black-haired young man with a black jacket and red scarf was following him, looking around. 

“He’s not here?” Yuuya asked as he walked in – “Is he out buying something?”

“Probably,” Hitori replied, “Let’s go, Yuuya-kun. I’m sleepy.”

“But I brought you here to introduce you!” Yuuya replied as he opened the door to the bedroom – and found that it was empty as well. The bedsheets and blanket was pretty messy, so clearly someone had slept on there. 

“And to think I was here to talk about a potential genocide!” Yuuya sighed, “Let’s wait for him, then.”

Hitori walked around the apartment, looking around –

“Someone else was here,” he remarked, looking at the dishes piled by the sink, “There are two mugs here. And also two plates.”

“I mean, I didn’t tell him his friends can’t visit,” Yuuya replied, “I think it’s fine.”

“Aren’t you worried in the least that the Hawks might be visiting him?” Hitori asked as he sat down on the couch, “Like, trying to get him to do their genocide?”

Yuuya fell silent at this proposition – meanwhile, Hitori just yawned and lay down on the couch. 

“Anyway, tell me when he’s here or something,” Hitori said, “I’m going to sleep...”

Yuuya let out a sigh as he pulled out his phone, and quickly dialed Ryuuji’s number. 

_ “The number you’re calling is unavailable. Please call again later.” _

Yuuya sighed as he hung up, and sat down next to Hitori… who was sound asleep at this point. Yuuya took off his jacket, and placed it on Hitori to use sort of as a blanket – Hitori didn’t budge at all.

“Sleepyhead,” Yuuya teased as he mussed Hitori’s hair – Hitori let out a soft grunt, and Yuuya backed away. 

“Anyway, what should we do with Kawara?”

Hitori didn’t reply, of course, because he was asleep. 

  
  



	4. Chapter 4

“Room for two? How many nights?”

“Uh… just tonight, please.”

Ryuuji nervously watched as the receptionist typed something on his computer and then scrolled to look for something. Utsuro was sitting in one of the chairs, reading the newspaper. 

“There’s a room with a queen sized bed, would you like that?”

“Sure…”

The receptionist continued typing something for a bit, then handed Ryuuji a key. Ryuuji, in turn, put out a few bills for the receptionist. 

“Thank you,” Ryuuji replied as he took it. He quickly walked over to Utsuro, and tapped his shoulder. 

“Let's go. I got us a room.”

Utsuro nodded as he put down the newspaper, took the suitcase, and followed Ryuuji upstairs.    
  


 

It was two hours by train to Hachiman, and then they walked across the town – which doesn’t seem too affected by the Dove-Hawk conflict, luckily – to another part of town, hitched on a truck for a few hours. The driver, Rabu, dropped them here as he was getting close to the harbour, and he would not have a pleasant conversation with his boss if he was found with two passengers. 

“Hey, man,” Rabu asked before leaving, “What’s up with that kid anyway?”

“Nothing,” Ryuuji replied nervously, “He’s just a friend.”

“I don’t know… you said he’s sick?” Rabu asked, glancing at Utsuro, “It’s not contagious or anything, right?”

“If it is, I would’ve gotten it by now too, don’t you think?”

Rabu seemed to like that explanation, and nodded. 

“He didn’t say a word during the ride though. You’re not kidnapping him right? Am I going to be implicated for crime?”

“No, no! We’re just running away from Tokyo!”

“Yeah, heard it on the radio… it seems like a mess,” Rabu sighed, “Anyway, sorry I have to drop you here, but I really can’t take you further.”

“It’s alright! Thank you for even letting us hitch a ride!”

Utsuro bowed down, again, without saying anything. 

“Okay! You two be safe, alright?”

So Rabu waved his hand, and left. Ryuuji waved back too, shouting “Thanks” one last time.  

 

It was already dark anyway, and Ryuuji didn’t dare hitch another ride, lest it be a serial killer, he joked to Utsuro… although it wasn’t that funny. 

Ryuuji found them a simple motel, a few hours from Hachiman, by the highway. It definitely looked like an old building, and nobody else seem to be staying there. Actually Utsuro noticed one of the rooms had some suspicious noises coming from inside, so maybe they weren’t the only ones spending the night after all. 

“They only have one bed, are you okay with that?”

“Of course.”

Ryuuji stopped at the door at the end of the hallway, and then unlocked the door. 

The room was small, and decently clean. There was one big bed, as promised, a chair and table, and an old TV. Utsuro walked into the bathroom, and saw that it had a small tub and shower, sink, and toilet. Just the bare minimum.

Utsuro finally took off the face mask as he sat down on the bed. Ryuuji locked the door, and turned to him –

“Been a pretty long day, huh?”

“It’s alright,” Utsuro replied, “I’m glad we made it here.”

“I’m gonna shower, but make yourself at home,” Ryuuji said as he walked into the bathroom, and a few seconds later the sound of water running could be heard. Utsuro nodded as he turned to look for the TV remote. 

_ “A new clue have appeared regarding the murder of the Ichijous – the police have named a suspect, Kawara Ryuuji.” _

Utsuro could feel his heart skip a beat upon hearing that, and quickly turned to look at the bathroom – did Ryuuji hear any of that as well?

He decided to lower the volume and continued listening. 

_ “Kawara is a scientist working for the Hawk-led Takaba Labs, and on the day of the murder, he met with Mr. Ichijou in his office. He was also the last person Mr. Ichijou met before his death…” _

The TV flickered and switched to what looked like a rather grainy security camera footage. 

There were two figures there – Ryuuji was walking towards his father, sitting behind a table. Ryuuji then handed him what seemed like a file, before sitting down. Utsuro could see his father opening the file, reading it, and then turning to sip some coffee. 

_ “Mr. Ichijou apparently died a few hours after the meeting. Although Kawara’s link to the crime is unknown, the police wants to at least ask what he knew about the crime.” _

Utsuro suddenly realized that the sound of the shower had stopped, and hurriedly turned off the TV. He turned to look at the bathroom – Ryuuji was still inside. 

On that day when the revolution began…

Utsuro remembered now, that Ryuuji had to submit an evaluation to his dad. Utsuro was supposed to go with him, but then he decided he’d rather stay to finish whatever he was working on, and Ryuuji agreed to go alone. 

Then that night, someone broke into the lab, attacked him and knocked him unconscious, but Ryuuji managed to get him out…

...or at least that’s what Ryuuji told him, what Ryuuji wanted him to believe. 

But someone certainly was, or is, after his life. 

 

Ryuuji walked out a few minutes later to find Utsuro sitting by the edge of the bed, seemingly in deep thought. 

“Utsuro-kun?” Ryuuji called, and Utsuro seemed so surprised that he almost jumped out of his chair –

“Hey, you okay?”

“Y… yeah,” Utsuro replied nervously, “Totally fine.”

Ryuuji looked at him for a while, clearly doubting the truth of that answer – Utsuro just kept smiling at him, trying to make himself look more convincing, despite being unsure of how effective that is.

Finally, Ryuuji decided not to press, and gave Isa a friendly smile. 

“Man, I’m hungry! We should get something to eat,” Ryuuji suggested, “Anything specific thing you want, Utsuro-kun? Let’s go out and get food.”

“I’m not hungry, actually…”

“Don’t say that! Of course you have to eat!” Ryuuji said, “Come on, get changed and let’s go!”

“But I’m really fine,” Utsuro replied, “I can wait here, Kawara-sensei.”

“Is that so…” 

Ryuuji sighed, but nodded understandingly. 

“I guess you must be tired. I’ll just buy you something, then,” Ryuuji said, “Just rest, and take a shower. Take it easy, okay, Utsuro-kun?”

“Thank you, Kawara-sensei.”

Ryuuji opened his bag, fished for his wallet, put it in his pocket, and walked to the door. 

“Remember, don’t open the door to anyone but me,” Ryuuji said, and Utsuro gave a nod; so Ryuuji smiled, walked out and closed the door. 

 

And so Utsuro looked out of the window, waiting. 

According to the clock, it was almost eleven PM. Ryuuji had been away for ten minutes now…

Utsuro had showered, and had put back on the green hoodie and mask Ryuuji had given him this morning, then looked on the mirror – this way, nobody could see his face and wouldn’t be able to tell who he was. 

He turned to take the bag Ryuuji had packed his clothes in. 

Now that he thought about it, Ryuuji had just bought those clothes for him, since he was staying over, basically. 

_ Why am I doing this?  _ Utsuro stopped to think for a split second –

After all, everything Ryuuji had done for him was to keep him safe. What reason did he have to doubt any of that?

_ Because he’s going to kill you very, very soon.  _

_ That must’ve been why he brought me to such an insolated place. He’ll poison whatever food he brings back, and when you die, nobody will ever find me, or hear my screams for help, and you won’t have anywhere to escape either. It’s the perfect setting for a perfect crime.  _

_...no, Kawara-sensei will never do something like that.  _

_...or at least, that’s what I want to believe.  _

What he was doing felt wrong, but at the same time, he couldn’t help but feel like he had to. 

_ Where will I go? _

It struck Utsuro then, that he had nowhere to go. His home was gone now, and clearly he had had nobody but Ryuuji –

Nevertheless, Utsuro took his bag, opened the door, and ran away while trying his best not to look back. 

 


	5. Chapter 5

Utsuro found himself in a big room, sitting alone at the end of a big table. 

Looks like nobody else was there, at least at the moment. Utsuro swung his legs under the table excitedly, looking around –

A grand chandelier hung above the table, its crystals glimmering and shining various colours of light. 

The room was warm, and a pleasant smell was in the air. Utsuro looked at the table – a few plates and glasses and utensils were set –

Suddenly he heard the door creak open, and turned to look –

He saw his mother enter the room, holding a big plate with a lavishly decorated cake on it; his dad was right behind her, carrying a big present box, and smiling widely, and Ryuuji entered the room a few seconds later, also carrying a box. 

“Merry Christmas, Utsuro!”

They all set down what they were carrying and walked over to Utsuro, his mum kissing his cheeks first, then his dad. Utsuro giggled happily as he was handed the box, and reached for the ribbon. 

He pulled the ends of the ribbons, and then opened the box. Inside was a big teddy bear, and Utsuro quickly lifted it out – 

“Do you like your present?”

“Yes! Thank you, papa!” Utsuro replied, reaching over to hug his dad. His dad kissed him again on the forehead as Utsuro turned to Ryuuji – 

“Merry Christmas, Utsuro-kun!” Ryuuji said, mussing Utsuro’s hair – “I brought a little present for you!”

“Thank you, Kawara-sensei!” Utsuro exclaimed while also pulling Ryuuji close and kissing his cheek. He then turned to the box Ryuuji was holding – slightly smaller compared to the one his father gave, but Utsuro seemed excited nevertheless – 

He unwrapped it, and it was a book, a hardcover science book of sorts. Utsuro turned to Ryuuji, smiling, and Ryuuji smiled back upon seeing how happy Utsuro was.

“You like it?”

“I like all kinds of books!” Utsuro replied excitedly, “Thank you, Kawara-sensei!”

“Anyway, let’s all have some food!” Utsuro heard his mum call, “What would you like to drink, Mr. Kawara?”

“Anything’s fine with me!”

The three of them sat around the table while a maid walked in, carrying a cart full of more food. Utsuro wowed as he looked at what was there – a big roasted chicken on a plate, some fried cheese sticks, chocolate pudding, and all other kinds of mouth-watering food…

Utsuro turned to look at his parents and Ryuuji, all of them sitting around the table and chatting happily. Clearly he couldn’t join that conversation about whatever adult business they were talking about, but just sitting there listening to them was food enough. 

This is perfect – everyone is here, everyone is happy, and everything will be alright. 

This is how everything should be.

~•~

Utsuro woke up to the cold, hard feeling of the air around him, and the hardness of the bench he was laying on.

He quickly got up and patted his bag, which he’d used as a pillow. Nothing should be missing from there, right? Utsuro quickly put his mask back on, just in case. 

He looked around the station – nobody was there except for a janitor who was wiping the floor. This train station actually looked pretty deserted – it was probably the terminal station for some train line nobody really uses. 

The janitor didn’t seem to notice him yet, or maybe they’re just used to homeless people sleeping in the station. 

Utsuro slowly got up, his back was hurting a bit, carried his bag, and walked to the nearest map. 

Where should he go now?

Home is no longer an option, and he just decided to abandon his only chance at safety – if Ryuuji was ever one, that is. 

Only now did he truly feel alone, with nobody to depend on…

_...but I have to stay strong, and live.  _

_...I guess.  _

The next train, according to the timetable, will be here in about fifteen minutes. 

He could feel his stomach growling – when was the last time he ate, anyway? Yesterday morning?

Utsuro opened his bag and fished around, looking for something to eat… only to remember that he had no money, and no access to his bank account. He probably wouldn’t want to do that anyway, since that would give away that he was still alive, and then the police and probably both the Doves and Hawks would be looking for him. The most valuable thing he had on him was really his glasses, and pawning it isn’t an option...

So the only option is to earn money. 

He miraculously found a few packs of cookies and chips – he took out a pack of cookies and started eating. 

He noticed that the janitor was done, and now leaving. Now he had some time to kill without being worried about anyone.

~•~

Ryuuji walked over to the receptionist and handed over his keys – the receptionist took it, looked over his bill, before turning to him. 

“That will be another eighty dollars, please.”

“Here it is,” Ryuuji said while handing over the money, “What’s the best way to get to the nearest city, by the way?”

“You mean Hachiman?”

“Anywhere is fine.”

“There’s a bus stop if you walk down that street for… about twenty minutes,” the receptionist replied, pointing out of the window. “I think they can take you to the train station, and then the rest should be easy. It takes about an hour to walk to the station though.”

“Thank you very much.”

“Where’s that boy who was with you yesterday, by the way?”

Ryuuji sighed, shaking his head.

“Did you see him going anywhere?”

“I went home soon after you came here, so no,” the receptionist replied, “I can call my friend and ask, though.”

“No, it’s alright,” Ryuuji replied, “Thanks for telling me the way.”

And so Ryuuji walked out, holding the bag in his hand. 

It was pretty cold outside, at least compared to the motel. He looked around the empty streets – most shops were still closed, or just getting ready to open. 

 

Felt strange, walking around town without Utsuro like this. 

Last night Ryuuji came back from buying food to find the room empty and one of the bags of clothes missing. 

Ryuuji quickly ran back downstairs to the lobby and out to the street, looking for Utsuro –

He spent about half an hour walking around, shouting his name on the streets like a madman, before realizing that even if Utsuro had heard him, he probably wouldn’t want to go with him anymore.

Why? 

Ryuuji still couldn’t understand, but it happened.

There was no way for him to look for Utsuro now, and he’d been trying to convince himself that since last night, but he still couldn’t stop worrying – 

_ Is he alright now? Where is he? He doesn’t have any money on him, so how will he afford for things? _

_ He’s still so young, he’s probably lost or really confused somewhere… and with the way things are right now, I can’t help him.  _

And yet, a part of him was relieved.

With Utsuro gone, now he can stop fussing over his safety and was free to do whatever he needed to do – and those people at the Dove Party would be even more convinced that Utsuro is dead and Ryuuji had properly disposed of the evidence.

It was pretty difficult, deciding how to feel about Utsuro’s departure, 

But Ryuuji tried to not think too much about it. He has his own things to do after all. If he heard nothing about Utsuro in the news, he’s probably okay, and if anything were to happen to him, he’d hear about it from the news too. 

~•~

It was a normal day for Kenzaburou Urushihara. 

Not a lot of customers today, compared to usual… which is good, because that means he didn’t have to move around as much. If he walks too much, his back and waist would hurt… ah, being old sure is inconvenient. 

Usually he had someone else, a high school student, who would be the waitress while he just makes drinks and food, but she recently decided to take a few weeks off, so he was left alone. He did post a sign outside saying “Help wanted”, but so far nobody had contacted him yet. Maybe the cafe was just too small or located too far away for the potential employees…

He made himself a cup of tea as he sat behind the counter, waiting for customers. 

It was a bright, sunny day out – would be nice if he could go take a stroll, but alas, he had to take care of the cafe. Some customer might come here, and he definitely would feel terrible if they came all the way to find the bar was closed. 

And boy, he was right.

A young man in a dark green hoodie walked into the cafe about ten minutes later, looking around in confusion. Urushihara quickly stood up to greet him –

“Good afternoon, welcome to Torimi cafe,” he greeted – the young man seem startled to have heard him. He was wearing a mask, the sort people wear in hospitals, and was carrying a big bag –

“May I help you?” Urushihara asked in a friendly tone as he took the menu, “Please, you can sit anywhere you want.”

“Ah, I’m… not here to buy something…”

The young man nervously turned to look at Urushihara. He seemed… scared, for some reason Urushihara couldn’t point out. There was nothing dangerous in the cafe, and nobody else was there...

“You said you’re… looking to hire someone?”

“My only waitress is taking a few weeks off, so I need someone to take over her place temporarily,” Urushihara replied calmly, “If you do a good job, though, I might hire you permanently. It won’t hurt to have one more helper around here, I suppose.”

“I see then…”

“As for your pay, I’ll pay you every Saturday, 270 dollars,” Urushihara explained, “I’ll need you to work from four to ten everyday, from Monday to Saturday.”

“Actually, is it alright if you pay me daily instead?”

“I don’t see a problem,” Urushihara replied, “So that’s…”

“Forty-five dollars everyday,” the young man told him.

“You sure are good at math!” Urushihara praised, “What school do you attend?”

“I… graduated recently,” he replied, “So I’m looking for a job now.”

“By the way, do you mind taking your mask off for a moment?”

“Ah! Of course, I’m sorry!” he quickly apologized as he took off the mask and put down his hood– 

Urushihara had expected some sort of defect that would cause the young man to need to cover up his face, but no – he was quite good looking, actually. Urushihara would guess he was about seventeen from his boyish face, he had purple eyes, brown hair, and was wearing red glasses.

“Why do you need the mask, if I may ask?”

“I just… have a lot of allergies,” he replied, “But I think it’s going to be fine if I’m just in the cafe.”

“That’s good to hear.” Urushihara gave out his hand then – 

“I’m Kenzaburou Urushihara.”

“Ah… sorry I didn’t introduce myself,” the young man said timidly while shaking Urushihara’s hand – “I’m Isa Souma. Nice to meet you, sir.”

“Well, why don’t you get changed, and while no customers are here yet maybe I’ll show you how to use some of the things around here?”

 


	6. Chapter 6

It really didn’t take all that long to make it back to Tokyo – felt much shorter compared to when they left, actually. 

Ryuuji arrived before sunset, and he could see that there were much more people on the streets now. Maybe the revolution had slowly died down, and life was returning to normal...

He quickly went home, to his ‘safe place’. Once inside, he put down his bag on the couch, looking around the apartment. Seems like nobody had been here, since nothing was moved – 

He sat down on the couch, enjoying the silence.

Although it felt awkward, because Utsuro was usually here as well. Not that Utsuro talked that much, but he sure felt the difference now that he wasn’t around.

It’s quite unbelievable that Utsuro had only been gone for less than twenty four hours. 

_ Should I call the police? Or leave him be? If they believe he’s dead and stopped looking for him, maybe it’ll be easier for him to escape… _

Ryuuji couldn’t help but sigh. Thinking about this was making his head hurt…

But not like he could’ve done anything else. Take Utsuro out of the country? Where would they go anyway, and then what about him? He’d have to find a job to sustain the two of them, and won’t the Dove Party members try to track him down? Wouldn’t that end up endangering Utsuro even more?

Maybe Utsuro leaving him and trying his best to survive on his own would be the best option right now. 

Maybe now all that’s left is to wait for things to become normal, if it ever will be. 

Things certainly will never be like before. Not with Utsuro gone like this. 

 

Ryuuji suddenly heard the click of the door, and quickly turned around to look. 

Yuuya walked into the room, followed by a black-haired young man. 

“Hey! You’re back!” Yuuya said, “Where were you yesterday?”

“You know, just going around town,” Ryuuji replied, “Were you looking for me?”

“Yeah! I couldn’t call you, for some reason,” Yuuya said as he sat down next to Ryuuji. Ryuuji turned to take out his phone from his pocket, turning it on. 

“Maybe the signal was messed up? Sorry about that.”

“Yeah, that’s cool!” Yuuya pointed at Hitori, “This is Uzune Hitori, a new friend.”

“Nice to meet you,” Ryuuji said, and Hitori gave him a somewhat hesitant nod.

“By the way, I’ll be out of town next week,” Yuuya said, “Before that, I’d like to ask another favor from you.”

“What, kill another family?”

“No, nothing like that!” Yuuya replied, playfully slapping Ryuuji’s back, “The police are onto you, so we can’t have you doing that kind of work anymore.”

“That’s a relief.”

“Can you call your Hawk Party friends?” Yuuya asked, “Like, maybe some of them wants to work with us.”

“You think so?”

“I don’t know, but it’s not wrong to try, right?”

Ryuuji looked at Yuuya for a while without saying anything, before he sighed and turned to look away at the TV.

~•~

  
  


Working at Torimi cafe was actually working out quite well for Isa.

His job mostly consisted of serving food and drinks since Urushihara wasn’t fit enough to walk around much, sometimes washing the dishes and wiping the tables, too. 

Urushihara was a nice old man, who rarely spoke unless a customer had started a conversation with him. He’s usually the one who makes the drinks and cooks, and Isa had never tasted a better cup of coffee compared to the one he made. Isa noted to ask the recipe sometime before he left. 

He’s living in an internet cafe now and eating the most simple food he could find – ramen and rice bowls, usually. He was slowly making enough to save – maybe he’d buy a train or boat ticket later, ride it somewhere far away. 

During the day before his work started, Isa really had nothing to do except browse the internet, read some news… but all the articles he’d read about himself and his parents pretty much said nothing of significance. He was still missing, and his parents’ murderer hasn’t been found. Ryuuji was mentioned a few times, but the police hasn’t found him yet, it seemed. 

Still, it seemed like most Hawk Party members who hold important positions in the government had resigned, letting the Dove Party take over the government. Maybe they all would have fled to another country, in fear of ending up like the Ichijous…

 

Maybe this was the kind of life an Isa Souma would’ve gotten, anyway. Ichijou Utsuro would be too cooped up in whatever political scheme or science related work to have a normal life like this.

 

“Isa-kun, do you have a moment?”

Nobody else was in the cafe at that moment – just the two of them, because it was almost closing time.

“Of course, Kenzaburou-san,” Isa replied, “What do you need?”

“Nothing, really,” Urushihara replied while wiping a cup, “Now that you’ve worked here for almost two weeks, I just felt like there are a few questions I want to ask.”

“...go ahead,” Isa muttered, feeling the nervousness rising from his chest.

“Are you running away from home?” Urushihara asked calmly – 

He could see that Isa immediately fell silent and looked down at the floor. Seems like whatever his answer was going to be would not be pleasant…

“I’m not going to tell you to go home,” Urushihara said, “I’m just curious.”

Isa was silent for a few more minutes, as if he was trying to muster the courage to talk, or just trying to find the right words to say –

“I… can’t go home anymore.”

Urushihara could tell Isa was pretty worked up – his hands were nervously bunching up his apron, and he was clearly avoiding eye contact. 

Urushihara decided not to ask him to elaborate, and gave him a warm smile instead. Maybe he got disowned or kicked out of the house… either way, not a pleasant circumstance. 

“If that’s the case, where have you been sleeping?”

“In an internet cafe, just around the corner.”

_ Ah, so that must be why he asked to be paid daily _ , Urushihara thought. 

“Would you like to live here instead?” he asked, “At least that way you won’t have to pay rent. It’s also bigger here, don’t you think?”

“It’s nothing to worry about,” Isa replied, “I can manage on my own.”

“Really?” Urushihara asked, “Tell me if there’s anything I can help you with, alright?”

Isa stopped to think about it – actually it wasn’t a bad offer. At least if he lives in the cafe, he’d only be spending money on food, and by the time the usual waitress comes back, he’d probably have saved enough to leave town…

“I think I’ll take you up on the offer. I’ll probably bring my stuff here tomorrow,” Isa replied, “I’ll help with cleaning the cafe before it opens, too.”

“You don’t have to,” Urushihara said, “Although I’d greatly appreciate it.

“Quite the hard worker, aren’t you, Isa-kun?”

Isa smiled as went on with washing the dishes. 

“By the way, is your other employee coming back soon?”

“Ah, you mean Tosaka-san,” Urushihara replied, “She should be back next week.”

“I see…”

“Are you worried about losing your job?”

Isa nodded nervously. 

“You’re a really good worker, Isa-kun, so even if it turns out you can’t continue working here, I’ll make sure to recommend you to another store,” Urushihara said, “I have a few connections and friends as well, you know.”

“Thank you very much, Kenzaburou-san.”

“Don’t hesitate to tell me if you need anything, okay?”

~•~

 


	7. Chapter 7

Tohri sighed as he looked around the room. It was a plain, boring office room – white walls, a wooden table in front of him, and a few books on the table. Not even any decorations on the wall, and only a single light bulb hanging down from the ceiling. Not artistic at all!

The man in front of him was flipping through his files, barely paying any attention to him. He too, was boring in Tohri’s opinion – just wearing a striped black and white shirt, a Dove party jacket, and a red scarf. He introduced himself as Hitori – a rather depressing name, Tohri thought.

“So what did you call me here for?” Tohri asked, tapping his foot on the ground, “I don’t have much time.”

“As I said, we’re offering you a position in the Dove Party,” Hitori said, “Are you going to take it?”

“And why am I expected to comply?”

“Because we believe you’ll be useful for us,” Hitori replied, “And because it’s the best option for you.”

Tohri sighed while playing with his long hair. Hitori had been so cold and businesslike so far, so he wasn’t exactly enjoying this session.

“Am I the only one you’re offering this to?”

“Not really.”

“You know, Dove Party isn’t exactly famous for supporting brilliant aspiring scientists like me,” Tohri said, “You guys spend more money on advocacy and negotiations rather than research.”

“We’ll give you enough budget, so that’s not your concern,” Hitori assured, “As long as you do what we ask you to do, you’ll be fine.”

“Oh, no, no, I can’t accept that,” Tohri said immediately, “I need to be free to express my creativity, my artistic energy!”

“We’ll allow you, as long as you do some of the things we want as well.”

“Boy, this is difficult,” Tohri sighed, “I guess after all the things that’s gone down, it’s going to be difficult to go back to Takaba, huh…”

“Impossible, I would say,” Hitori corrected, “Considering that the Ichijous used to fund most of the activities in Takaba Labs, but they’re dead.”

“Is that why you killed Ichijou Utsuro?” Tohri asked, “So you can thoroughly cut off the money supply to Takaba Labs? I mean, if he’s dead, nobody can inherit the money, and so there goes our funding.”

Hitori fell silent at this accusation. Tohri took this as a “yes”, and sighed.

“I mean, I don’t hate Ichijou Utsuro, but I don’t like him that much. He can be annoying sometimes,” Tohri explained, “I still don’t think he’s involved in the bullshit his parents are doing, though, but we won’t know now, will we?

“Yeah, now that we’re talking about him, did you give him this proposition?”

Hitori shook his head.

“Killed him off too soon, huh?” Tohri asked mockingly, “He’s a really smart kid, too. Such a loss for you.”

“We don’t need someone corrupt like that in our party.”

 

Suddenly the door creaked open – Tohri and Hitori quickly turned to look, and saw Ryuuji walking in.

Tohri’s eyes visibly widened in surprise as he watched Ryuuji enter the room – Ryuuji seemed surprised to see him there, too.

“Oh, uh…” Ryuuji smiled sheepishly, “Hi there, Nishikikouji-kun.”

“Kawara? What are you…”

Tohri turned to look at Hitori in surprise, “What does this mean?”

“I… I see you guys are in the middle of a serious conversation!” Ryuuji said sheepishly as he turned to walked out of the door, “I suppose I’ll just come back later then…”

“Wait, Kawara!” Tohri shouted, “What happened to Ichijou? What did you do to him?”

Ryuuji didn’t reply, and instead hurried out of the room. Tohri, indignant, got up from his seat to go after him – 

“Answer me, Kawara! You traitor!”

Ryuuji closed the door behind him, and the next thing he heard was Tohri’s groan and a thud on the ground. That must be Hitori trying to restrain him…

Ryuuji considered opening the door again to check if Tohri was okay – but then Tohri would probably yell at him again, demanding an explanation; so he decided to leave it be.

He couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt though, suddenly being reminded of what he had truly done.

 

_...but there’s no other way to deal with it now._

_I just have to carry these regrets to the grave, I guess._

~•~

Isa was busy wiping the tables when he heard the door swing open. He looked up, and saw a girl walking into the cafe.

“We’re not open yet,” Isa quickly said – he had left the door unlocked just for Urushihara, but now a customer must’ve thought they were already open… although the sign at the door clearly said “Closed”.

“Ah, I’m sorry!” the girl said – Isa could see now that a young man with light blue hair was following her. “I know it’s not open yet, but… is Kenzaburou-san here?”

Isa shook his head.

“Oh wait, you’re wearing the cafe’s apron!” she pointed out, “So you must be the one he’s been talking about! Isa Souma, right?”

Isa nodded, despite being rather unsure why this girl would know him – but the girl quickly gave her hand for Isa to shake.

“I’m Tosaka Hiyoko! I’m the one who usually works as a waitress!”

“H… hello,” Isa greeted as he shook Hiyoko’s hand – her grip was strong, so strong Isa thought his hand was going to be crushed for a second.

But either way, this must be the cafe’s usual worker. Urushihara did mention she would be back this week…

She’s quite pretty. Isa could tell she was slightly older than him, or… maybe she was just tall. Her body seemed pretty well-built too, almost like an athlete.

“And this is my boyfriend!” she introduced the young man, “Sakazaki Yuuya! I went to visit him, so that’s why I’m not here!”

Yuuya stepped forward to shake Isa’s hand, as well – 

Yuuya was handsome, Isa will give him that. He must be in his mid-twenties or something, and his body looked quite fit, too.

Isa noticed now, that Yuuya was wearing a black jacket with the Dove Party’s logo embroidered on it. Isa could feel a bit of uneasiness rising in his stomach –

As he shook Yuuya’s hand though, he could see that Yuuya’s eyes staring at him were cold, almost murderous.

_He… he must’ve recognized me._

Utsuro’s instincts were screaming at him to run, get as far away from this man as possible –

And yet the fear for him was gripping him so badly that he could barely move a muscle, so that he was frozen there.

Yuuya smiled, though, despite the threatening look in his eyes, and let go of Utsuro’s hand. Hiyoko seemed to notice the change in Yuuya’s expression as well, as she was looking at him in concern.

“...you okay, Yuuya?” she asked, “You got that dead serious look in your eyes again.”

“Yeah, of course!” Yuuya replied, his tone as cheerful as before – “We should wait for your boss, I suppose?”

“He should be here soon, it’s almost opening time,” Hiyoko said, before turning to Utsuro, “I guess we’ll talk to Kenzaburou-san about how things will work from here on, right, Isa-san?”

“Y… yes,” Utsuro replied timidly – he could feel Yuuya’s stare burning at his whole body…

It was so terrifying that Utsuro found himself unable to think – his heart was racing, his body was certainly on alert – 

But running away would just make Yuuya go after him, wouldn’t it?

“I… I should make some coffee,” Utsuro muttered – he just wanted to get out of here right now, get to somewhere Yuuya can’t see him – 

“Ahh, don’t sweat it!” Yuuya replied instead, “Just sit down with us and chill!”

“Yeah, he’s right, Isa-san,” Hiyoko chimed in, “I mean, I’d like to know you better!”

“...is that an indication you want to date him after me, mon cheri?”

“Oh, Yuuya, how could you think like that?” Hiyoko asked, playfully slapping his arm, “Let’s just have a nice friendly talk!”

“A nice friendly talk…”

Yuuya glanced at Utsuro, his eyes now dark, yet lit with anger.

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

  


“So when did you start working here, Isa-san?”

“About… two or three weeks ago,” Utsuro replied, “I just… happened to stumble upon the cafe, and saw that it needs an employee…”

“Do you live nearby?” Hiyoko asked, “What school do you go to?”

“I graduated recently,” Utsuro replied, purposefully ignoring the other question – “I’m just working for now. Maybe I’ll go to university next year…”

During the whole conversation, Hiyoko was sweet, friendly, and actually quite chatty, but Yuuya… was still glaring at him, a smirk resting on his face. Utsuro was… very uncomfortable with this.

“So, uh…” Utsuro smiled sheepishly, “Have you guys been dating long?”

“Well, it’s kind of long-distance. Yuuya has been studying in France, but now that he’s back, I was visiting him,” Hiyoko explained, “But you’re going back to France soon, right, Yuuya?”

“As soon as my work here is done,” Yuuya replied – Utsuro could only imagine what his ‘work’ could mean.

Utsuro, right now, just wanted to get the hell out of there – or at least wanted Yuuya to leave. Hiyoko is fine.

Utsuro noticed the door open then, and saw Urushihara walking in. Hiyoko excitedly stood up and ran over to him, hugging him tight.

“Kenzaburou-san!” she exclaimed, “How have you been?”

“Glad to have you back, Tosaka-chan,” Urushihara greeted, “Oh, and this must be the boyfriend you’re visiting.”

“Nice to meet you,” Yuuya greeted as he quickly stood up to shake Urushihara’s hand. “I’m Sakazaki Yuuya.”

“And you two have met Isa-kun?”

“Yeah! He’s really sweet!” she said, “So is he gonna continue working here?”

“I’m not sure yet… it’s going to be pretty difficult to afford the two of you working here,” Urushihara replied, “I did tell a few friends about him, though, so it won’t be difficult for him to get another job.”

“Thank you, Kenzaburou-san,” Isa replied while bowing down slightly.

“Anyway, I’ll be back to work tomorrow,” Hiyoko said, “Can Yuuya and I be customers for today?”

“Of course! Come on, Isa-kun, let’s get going.”

 

Everything was alright after that, though.

Yuuya ordered black coffee, while Hiyoko ordered iced milk coffee and a cake. Isa occasionally spotted her feeding a bite or two – typical gross things to do with your boyfriend, probably.

They left after about an hour – Utsuro felt like a big weight had been lifted from his shoulders when he watched them leave, finally free from Yuuya’s constant surveillance.

Everything else proceeded as normal. They had a normal load of customers, and Utsuro, busy with his own work, had no time to think about what happened earlier.

 

“So, Kenzaburou-san,” Isa xalled after they closed, “I think I should move out tonight.”

“You don’t have to,” Urushihara replied, “I know you’re very unlikely going to continue working here, but I don’t mind you living here for now.”

Suddenly the phone rang – Utsuro quickly walked over to pick it up, but Urushihara got to it first.

“Good evening, this is Torimi cafe.”

Utsuro decided to continue washing the dishes while waiting for Urushihara to be done.

“Yeah, we’re still here. Do you need anything?”

Utsuro noticed Urushihara glancing at him as he listened to the phone, before turning to look out of the window.

“Is that so?” he asked, “Yes, okay. I don’t see any problem with that. Okay, thanks.”

He hung up then – Utsuro couldn’t help but wonder if something had happened, but Urushihara seemed pretty composed, so maybe not.

“Anyway, just stay here until you find another job if you want,” Urushihara said, “And don’t worry about paying me.”

“But…”

“You’ve done well helping me here, so it’s alright,” Urushihara said as he proceeded to pack some of his things up – “Either way, it’s kind of late now, so you should just stay here. You can figure out where to go next tomorrow.”

“...I suppose,” Utsuro muttered. “Thank you, Kenzaburou-san.”

“Alright, stay safe,” Urushihara said as he walked out, “See you tomorrow, Isa-kun.”

Utsuro waved him goodbye, before he moved to the back, where he usually slept.

~•~

 

Utsuro had no idea what time it was when he heard a loud creak from outside.

Naturally, he quickly woke up, his body on alert – did a burglar come here?

Utsuro put on his glasses and grabbed the closest thing to a weapon he could find – a fruit knife – and slowly opened the door to peek outside –

Before he could see anything though, he felt a hand grabbing him by the throat and pushing him down to the floor. Utsuro let out a cough and raised his knife –

Only another hand caught his hand, twisting it – Utsuro let out a shriek, and unwillingly dropped the knife.

It was dark, so Utsuro couldn’t exactly see who was attacking him. He could feel some weight of the person on his body, pinning him down –

He suddenly felt the person raising his head, before slamming it back down on the wooden floor. Utsuro started screaming, panicking, trying to pry away the person’s hand from his throat –

He could feel his hand being released, but next came the feeling of cold metal pressed against his wrist – a knife.

“Oh, come on, stay put for a little.”

Utsuro immediately recognized that voice – Yuuya, Sakazaki Yuuya, from earlier.

“Ichijou Utsuro? Quite a feat that you’ve survived this long,” Yuuya said, “Everyone thought you’re dead, but in fact you’re just living under a fake name.”

“Let… let me go…”

“Yeah, soon enough this won’t hurt anymore,” Yuuya said, and Utsuro could feel Yuuya apply more force onto his neck, clearly trying to choke him – 

And then, just as suddenly as he’d come by, Utsuro could feel Yuuya releasing his grip, once again letting him breathe.

Utsuro had no idea why – did someone hear them? Maybe they were trying to help?

Either way, now that Yuuya had released him, Utsuro quickly got up, darting towards the door –

But he felt Yuuya grabbing him by the arm and kicking his legs. Utsuro fell down again, writhing in pain – 

“I told you to stay put,” Yuuya hissed, kicking Utsuro on his side. Whatever shoes he was wearing, it was pretty heavy, and Utsuro found his ribs in great pain.

Yuuya took this opportunity to grab Utsuro by the hair, slowly dragging him out through the back door. Utsuro tried kicking his legs and grabbing Yuuya’s arm in resistance – everything was just pure pain, from his head, to his neck, his body, his legs…

“I’m going to die,” Utsuro muttered, “Please… please, let me go.”

Yuuya threw Utsuro’s body towards a wall, so Utsuro’s back effectively slammed against it. Utsuro let out another groan, but he no longer tried fighting back – instead he just lay there on the dirt, sobbing.

“Look at you,” Yuuya sighed, pulling out his knife, “How miserable.”

“I don’t want to die,” Utsuro sobbed, folding his legs to protect his chest and bracing his head with his arms, “Please don’t kill me… I’m begging you…”

“You should’ve been dead a few weeks ago, you know,” Yuuya replied, “Maybe in a much nicer way than this too.”

Utsuro stopped talking, and instead started sobbing louder. Yuuya sighed as he walked closer to him, and grabbed his hair, causing Utsuro to moan in pain and look up.

He was miserable indeed, with the mud on half his face, tears running down his cheeks, and hair messy after Yuuya pulled them – he was still crying, his sobs making Yuuya almost feel a bit of sympathy.

And yet at the same time, it was quite entertaining, doing this to him.

“You don’t want to die?” Yuuya asked, “Don’t you want to see your parents again, or something?”

“I didn’t do anything,” Utsuro whimpered, “Please… let me go…”

“Not that easy, you son of a bitch.”

Yuuya threw him back down on the ground, and Utsuro let out a shriek as his head hit the hard asphalt. Yuuya then stepped on Utsuro’s head, using a little extra force on there to make a point – Utsuro started screaming again, and for some reason Yuuya found that incredibly entertaining.

He must’ve never imagined something like this happening. Being the son of people so rich and powerful, not knowing the corruption that goes on underneath…

Ah, this is perfect – just what Ichijou Utsuro deserved. To be humiliated, threatened, brought close to death.

“You know what would be fun?” Yuuya jeered as he kicked Utsuro’s head, almost like a ball,

“We should show you to the man who killed your parents, and let him decide what he wants to do with you."

Utsuro didn't reply, only continued crying, only slightly softer this time. Maybe he was sick and tired of after all the aggression done to him. 

But Yuuya simply couldn't have it like this – Utsuro deserved to be crushed entirely, to be suffering to the point he wants nothing but death.

 


	8. Chapter 8

Ryuuji hadn’t seen Tohri at all today. Does this mean he decided to not work with the Doves?

Ryuuji had an idea about where he could be right now, but was too scared to actually consider it, because… well, it could’ve been him if he refused to cooperate.

...either way, that probably couldn’t be helped. 

Even now, Ryuuji couldn’t help but fear sometimes, that the Dove Party would suddenly turn their back on him, just as how he’d turned his back on the Hawk Party.

But maybe… maybe, that’s not a problem for now.

 

Is there a point in fighting to survive, though? 

Or should he have refused in the first place and let them kill him? Maybe that way he could’ve died with his dignity as a Hawk too, rather than betraying his Party and ending up dead anyway.

What good had his presence done? Utsuro was missing now, and his colleagues are being pressured to join the other side or being killed…

Felt like everything he had done had been useless.

Everything was slowly losing meaning – to him, at least.

Maybe he was just waiting for his turn to come.

  
  
  


“Kawara? You busy? Can you come with me for a second?”

“Sure,” Ryuuji replied as he got up. Yuuya was standing by the door, waiting for him. 

They started walking down the cold, bright hallway. The hallway just had a very… unwelcoming look to it, with its grey walls and floor.

“So you sent off your girlfriend yesterday, huh?”

“Yup! She’s doing well,” Yuuya replied casually, “I probably won’t get to see her for another year or two, though.”

“She sure is very patient.”

“Takes patience and understanding to deal with all the things I deal with,” Yuuya said, “Or else you end up not making the right choice of marrying me.”

Ryuuji nodded, “I suppose.”

Yuuya stopped in front of a door then, and then opened it –

It was quite dark inside, and Ryuuji couldn’t see anything – but Yuuya gestured for him to come in, so he did. 

“What did you take me here for?”

“You’ll see,” Yuuya replied as he closed the door behind him, and the room was in total darkness for a second –

And then Yuuya turned on the light, and Ryuuji could immediately see –

Utsuro was laying on the floor in front of him, with his back to the wall – both his legs and arms were tied. 

Ryuuji could tell he had been attacked – his glasses were missing, and there were bruises around his neck. Utsuro stirred slightly upon hearing the footsteps, looking up to them weakly. 

“Utsuro-kun?” Ryuuji asked as he quickly ran to him – “Are you…”

“Now, now, Kawara.”

He felt someone holding him back – Yuuya, of course. 

“What’s with this show of sympathy?” Yuuya asked, “You were supposed to kill him, right?”

Ryuuji fell silent under this accusation – but he still couldn’t help but look at Utsuro, who was clearly in pain. 

“You told me you mutilated him and spread the remains around town?” Yuuya asked, “It doesn’t take a scientist to know that dead bodies can’t come back to life; so why is he here?”

“I…”

Ryuuji turned to look at Yuuya for a second, before turning to Utsuro again, who was looking up at him, his eyes pleading for help. 

“Why didn’t you kill him?”

“Kawara-sensei,” Utsuro whimpered, “You were… going to kill me?”

Ryuuji turned to look at him for a second, his gaze almost cold and emotionless –

“...yes.”

“And while we’re at it, he also killed your parents!” Yuuya said in his usual cheerful tone, despite the tension – “So it’s only fitting that he kills you as well, right?”

Utsuro was looking up at him, now clearly desperate –

 

It was difficult to imagine. Ryuuji was the one who helped him after he passed out at the lab after all – 

Took care of him for those few days, comforted him, protected him,

All just to kill him right now?

 

“It can’t be,” Utsuro muttered, struggling to move his hands towards Ryuuji – 

“Please, Kawara-sensei, he’s lying, right?”

 

Ryuuji didn’t say anything – in fact, he seemed to have just avoided lany eye contact with Utsuro.

Yuuya pulled out a knife from his pocket, took Ryuuji’s hand, and placed it on his palm. Ryuuji didn’t even seem to accept or deny it – he just seemed to let Yuuya do whatever he wanted, as if he had no more authority over his actions. 

“I guess I’ll give you another chance, since you’ve helped us so much,” Yuuya said, “Come on, do what you must.”

 

This was the worst possible scenario Utsuro could imagine. 

His parents were dead, he couldn’t escape from the people who wanted to kill him, and now Ryuuji had betrayed him too. 

Utsuro wanted to cry, ask for help – but at this point, nobody would help him anymore. 

All this time, he was delaying the inevitable –

 

But at least the pain and sadness will finally go away. 

Perhaps this is how things should be. Perhaps this is why Ryuuji had agreed to do it – because certainly, Ryuuji would do the right thing. 

 

Utsuro couldn’t tell what expression Ryuuji was wearing as he knelt down in front of Utsuro, knife gleaming in his hand. 

He was terrified – so terrified his heart was racing, and he could feel the blood rushing to his muscles, his head was so noisy he could barely think –

But at the same time, an overwhelming feeling of peace, 

that everything will soon be over. 

  
  


Ryuuji carefully took Utsuro’s hands, cutting the rope binding them together. 

Utsuro had closed his eyes for a few minutes, trying to avoid having to watch his own murder – but then he felt the coldness of metal brushing against his skin, and nothing else. 

Ryuuji got up, walking over to Utsuro’s legs, and cut the rope tying them together –

Then he dropped the knife, right in front of Utsuro’s eyes. 

 

“Interesting.”

The next thing Ryuuji knew was that Yuuya had pressed a knife by his neck – if he cut it in even by an centimeter, it’d cut his main artery. 

“So you’ve elected to let him go,” Yuuya said, “But why? Do you plan on keeping him… I don’t know, as a little pet you can tame and probably use one day?”

Ryuuji didn’t reply – he only watched as Utsuro looked up at him in disbelief, before then turning to look at the knife in front of him. 

“If you don’t kill him, you’re going to die,” Yuuya said, “We talked about this in our contract.”

“You talk like there’s a choice,” Ryuuji sighed, “You’ll kill me sooner or later anyway, once you no longer find me useful.”

That said, Ryuuji suddenly turned around, grabbing Yuuya’s hand and jerking it away. Yuuya lunges forward, another knife in hand, and tried to stab Ryuuji’s chest again. Ryuuji managed to avoid it in time, although the knife grazed his arm. 

“Utsuro-kun, take that knife and run away!” Ryuuji shouted, “Hurry!”

Ryuuji suddenly felt Yuuya push him down to the ground, pinning his head against the floor. Ryuuji tried pushing him away, only to end up grabbing the knife Yuuya was holding, thus making his hands bleed. 

“Yeah, there’s not a choice, alright,” Yuuya said, “You both are going to die here.”

“No, let him go!” Ryuuji shouted, still holding to Yuuya so he couldn’t leave – Yuuya was winning in terms of power, though, so the knife was getting pushed dangerously close to Ryuuji’s face –

Ryuuji tried getting up, trying to flip so that he was pinning Yuuya to the ground, but Yuuya was too strong for him... 

And suddenly, Yuuya stopped, as if he just froze in place –

Then he slowly got up, pulling his knife away from Ryuuji. 

Ryuuji could see Utsuro standing next to Yuuya, the knife in his hand stained with blood. Utsuro seemed afraid, but at the same time, determined – 

Ryuuji quickly got up, and Yuuya, distracted, didn’t put up much of a fight as Ryuuji pushed him to the nearest wall. Utsuro, seeing his opportunity, quickly charged at Yuuya again, this time cutting his neck. 

Yuuya fell to the ground, holding his bleeding neck – he dropped the knife he was holding, and Ryuuji quickly grabbed it. 

“Run!” Ryuuji shouted at Utsuro, “Go before they find you!”

But instead Utsuro just stood there, still holding the knife, his eyes affixed on Ryuuji.

“Come on, you’ll be fine,” Ryuuji said, “I’ll be behind you, just go.”

“Kawara-sensei, is it true?”

Utsuro slowly aimed his knife at Ryuuji. Ryuuji couldn’t help but be a little surprised at this – but he didn’t say anything.

“You were going to kill me?” Utsuro asked, “It’s… it’s all lies, right? 

“On the day those people broke into the lab and knocked me out, you… you helped me escape. And let me live with you. And…”

“Utsuro-kun,” Ryuuji replied, “Just run away.”

“I don’t understand,” Utsuro muttered, “Everything you did was to kill me?”

Ryuuji was silent for a second, unsure what to say – but then he let out a sigh and nodded.

“Yes,” Ryuuji replied decisively, “I was waiting for the right moment.

“That’s why I took you out of town to such a deserted place too,” Ryuuji explained, “So that nobody can help you, and your body won’t be found too quickly.

“Remember when I was going to buy food?” he went on, “I was going to poison you that way…”

“It can’t be!” Utsuro shouted, “You’re lying!”

“I poisoned your father on that meeting where I had to submit the report. I offered him coffee and laced it in there,” Ryuuji explained, “As for your mother…”

“Stop!” Utsuro screamed, “Stop it! You’re lying!”

“You should really leave, Utsuro-kun.”

But Utsuro didn’t – instead raising his knife above Ryuuji’s hand, ready to stab him. Ryuuji watched him without doing anything, despite having the knife in his own hand...

“Do it,” Ryuuji said, “I deserve to die.”

  
  


Could it really be?

Despite everything that happened, despite everything Utsuro wanted to believe,

Does the truth always have to hurt him this way?

 

_ I don’t want this. _

_ I don’t want Kawara-sensei to disappear, too.  _

_ But… but he killed mum and dad. He took everything away from me… _

_ I just want to go home. _

 

Utsuro slowly lowered his knife, although still holding the knife so tightly his knuckles were white – 

He could feel hot tears streaming down from his eyes. 

 

_ Am I really going to let him go? _

_ I don’t want to kill him, but he must die. _

_ Or I’ll die. _

 

Utsuro saw Ryuuji got up then, 

He put a hand over Utsuro’s eyes, while his other arm circled his waist, holding him close.

“Utsuro-kun,” Ryuuji whispered, “It’s going to be fine, okay? Stop crying.”

Ryuuji opened Utsuro’s eyes then, wiped some of the tears on his cheeks – some of the blood from Ryuuji’s hands smeared on there messily. 

“Run away,” Ryuuji muttered, giving him a big smile, “I’ll go after you, okay? It’s going to be fine.”

Ryuuji could see that Utsuro was still uncertain, and also crying while holding the knife in his hand.

“I’ll do all the killing. You need to go,” Ryuuji said, “I’ll be right behind you. You’re a strong, brave boy, Utsuro-kun, you can do it.”

Utsuro slowly gave a hesitant nod, although he was still crying. Ryuuji slowly pushed him to the door – 

Utsuro looked back at him one last time before he ran down the hallway, as fast as he could. 

 

Ryuuji looked back at Yuuya one last time –

He was no longer moving. Maybe he passed out from the blood loss or actually died – either way, that’s probably one less thing to worry about.

Ryuuji closed the door behind him, walking out with the knife in his hand. He looked around the now empty hallway – 

_ Hopefully Utsuro made it out. _

He looked back at the hallway, and saw Hitori slowly walking towards him.

“So now you’re betraying us?” he asked, “You won’t get out of here alive.”

“Yeah, I figured,” Ryuuji shrugged, “That’s okay, I guess.”


	9. Chapter 9

Utsuro ran as fast as he could, away from the place where he had been detained.

Running as fast as he could, without any real destination in mind – he just knew to get as far away from that place as he could. 

He kept running and running – it felt like his legs were burning, ready to give up anytime, but Utsuro continued bracing himself, running as far as he could –

He didn’t stop until he reached the end of the world. 

 

His toes touched the cold water in front of him, marking the endpoint. 

He stopped for a second, standing still, taking in his surroundings –

It was not quiet but peaceful – the gentle lapping of the waves, the sound of the wind, the soft cries of the seagulls in the distance. The soft sand beneath his feet, the cold sea breeze brushing against his body. 

 

Where should he go next?

Here he was alone at the end of the world. 

 

“Utsuro-kun?”

He quickly turned around upon hearing that voice, and standing behind him was Ryuuji, holding out his his hand –

He lovingly mussed Utsuro’s hair and smiled. His hand felt warm compared to everything else...

“I knew I can believe in you, Utsuro-kun.”

~•~

“Utsuro?”

He sighed as he slowly opened his eyes. 

He was in a cold, bright room, and the smell of antiseptics lingered in the air. 

He felt a hand on his shoulder, gently shaking him awake. He looked up, and saw a green-haired man standing by his bed…

“Oh, oh, goodness, I thought we lost you,” the man said in relief, “Utsuro, are you okay?”

“Uncle Mino…”

“I’m so glad you’re okay!” Mino exclaimed as he hugged Utsuro, “Are you feeling hurt anywhere? Any pain? Can we get you something?”

Utsuro shook his head weakly. He could see a doctor and nurse coming into the room –

How did he get here? What happened? 

It just felt like he ran and ran, and then he met Ryuuji, and then everything was cut off until he woke back up. 

 

“You’re going to live with me now,” Mino told him, “I know my house isn’t as big as yours, but you know, I’ll try my best!”

“Kawara-sensei?”

Mino turned to look at him strangely. 

“Kawara-sensei… told me to run away,” Utsuro muttered, “Where is he now?”

“Oh, he’s dead,” Mino replied, “Good riddance. He killed your mum and dad after all.”

_ …dead? _

_ But certainly, he… _

“What happened?”

“I don’t know, they found his body outside of town with multiple stab wounds.”

Utsuro could feel his heart sink upon hearing that. 

Tracing back to his memories – he and Ryuuji was in the dark room together,

He, with a knife raised upon Ryuuji. If he died from being stabbed, doesn’t that mean...

“...did I kill him?”

 

Mino turned to look at Utsuro for a second, before he sighed and walked over. 

“Of course you didn’t,” Mino replied, “He was too far away from here.”

“What do you mean?”

“He was found near Hachiman, that’s… two hours from here?” he replied, “And you were found collapsed in Tokyo.”

“But…”

“Utsuro-kun, even if you killed him, it’s okay,” Mino sighed, “He killed your parents, so it’s just revenge, right?”

Utsuro sighed as he rolled to face away from Mino. 

Nothing felt right, but… perhaps this is how it should be, how it must be. 

 

“Can I see him, at least?”

“What for, Utsuro?” Mino asked, “You’ll just be sad again, no?

“Ah, I know. Utsuro-kun must’ve wanted him to live so he can face judgement, right?”

Utsuro fell silent. 

Was that why he wanted Ryuuji to live, or was there some other reason?

 

There were still so many things Utsuro wanted to ask, perhaps – just seeking for the truth.

It’s too late now, perhaps.

 

“I don’t understand.”

“It’s going to be fine,” a voice echoed, “You don’t have to.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sticks up leggy. and that's it my dudes  
> is this what u expected or, would u have liked to see ryuuji live (because on twatter the majority wanted ryuuji to die and so he's dead by popular demand)  
> anyway i might not write anything for a while bc i wanna work on sth else so. expect sth exciting soon


End file.
